ROCKFORD — Rockford fire and police commissioners are expected to schedule a hearing to determine whether there is probable cause to charge Rockford Police Chief Chet Epperson with violating police regulations and standards.

Union leaders have formally accused Epperson of violating department regulations because of statements he is said to have made during an Oct. 30 incident at the home of NAACP Rockford Chapter President Lloyd Johnston.

Previous informal union requests for a “full, fair and impartial” investigation were rejected. That could change with a formal five-count complaint and affidavit filed with the Rockford Board of Fire and Police Commissioners.

Epperson displayed incompetence, set a poor example for other officers, made a false report and brought discredit to the department with statements he made via speakerphone to Johnston, said Terry Peterson, union president and Rockford police officer.

“This is kind of the straw that broke the camel’s back,” said Peterson, noting long-running animosity between the union and Epperson. “There is a pattern of practice here by the chief, and those issues will come out later because this is the tip of the iceberg. This is just the beginning of a process.”

Union members have long questioned Epperson’s leadership skills giving him a 276-6 no-confidence vote in 2007, a year after he was named chief. They have seized on the incident in October as an example.

Officers were dispatched to Johnston’s house Oct. 30 after his ex-wife, living in New York, reported a possible fight she heard over the phone involving their grown son, who lives with Johnston, before the line went dead.

The fight report turned out to be false.

But police officers needed to conduct a welfare check on Johnston’s son. Johnston declined to allow the officers inside, asserting a Constitutional right against illegal searches and seizures.

Johnston — who in his position with the NAACP has been critical of officer-involved shootings in Rockford — said the officers on his porch were overly aggressive and rude, and threatened to kick in his door while refusing to say why they were there.

He called Epperson and put him on speakerphone.

In his police report, Officer D’Evyron Boone said he could hear Epperson on speaker phone say not to “let them into the house and tell them to leave.” Boone wrote that he heard Epperson say he was sending a police supervisor to the residence.

Mayor Larry Morrissey has previously pointed out that the situation was resolved peacefully and without further incident when the supervisor arrived and police were able to check the condition of Johnston’s grown son.

Page 2 of 2 - Thursday, in a prepared statement released to the media after 5 p.m., the mayor continued to back the police chief.

“The sole debate in this matter is on the difference of opinion as to whether Chief Epperson asked that the responding officers leave the scene instead of waiting there for the supervisor.

“Nobody debates the fact that Chief Epperson immediately requested a supervisor on scene. There simply is no issue here. The supervisor handled the concerns of both Mr. Johnston and the officers on the scene. The situation was handled. No criminal activity occurred. No arrests were made. Chief Epperson acted appropriately. Sending a supervisor to respond in an attempt to de-escalate a potentially volatile situation is standard procedure designed to protect both City Police Officers and the public.”

Epperson did not return a phone call seeking comment.

Reached Thursday, Johnston said he was not surprised by the formal complaint. He also said he hopes it’s not counterproductive to the grassroot movement of Transform Rockford.

“It’s unfortunate that it comes at this particular time when there is momentum to bring individuals and institutions together to solve some of Rockford’s problems,” he said.

As for the five-count complaint being warranted, Johnston said, “It’s a matter of perspective,” he said. “From the union leadership. It’s necessary. From a civilian or everyday citizen’s perspective, it’s not necessary.”

Commission secretary and legal counsel Ian Linnabary confirmed the complaint was filed but declined further comment.

Police commission President LoRayne Logan did not immediately return a call seeking comment.